


Secluded

by Remembertherandler



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, Kissing, M/M, Smut, Switch!rhink, implied infidelity, private island vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-22
Updated: 2018-03-19
Packaged: 2019-03-07 23:58:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 13,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13446153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Remembertherandler/pseuds/Remembertherandler
Summary: Sometimes all you need is a little time away. Four thousand miles and a border crossing should do it. Tucked away in the wilderness, disconnected from a world full of responsibility and duty, Rhett and Link look for a way to forget all of the things that are keeping them apart, and seek out the seclusion that will remind them why they’ll always manage to stay together.





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [redtessa](https://archiveofourown.org/users/redtessa/gifts).



> Written as a part of a follower giveaway, and I can already tell it's going to get out of hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Fade - Lewis Capaldi](https://youtu.be/hM_kejkWeHU)   
> 

Sometimes you just need to get away. Life is complicated. Responsibility bears down heavy. Sometimes the air sits in your lungs like cement. Routine so draining. Accountability sucks you dry.

In the past it had been easier to escape the weight of it all. Little stolen moments enough to lessen the burden. But it had only gotten harder to be apart, to pretend. Those late Thursday evenings at the office, enough to fuel another day, those weekends away, getting them through just one more week.

Link buried himself in work. Long hours planning out the minutia of the busiest year of their existence was his way of distracting himself from the mess they’d managed to make of their personal lives. But Rhett found it harder to hide. His fixated mind was not one to be so easily thrown off track. He could not find the same solace in his work, but riding on waves there was some reprieve, walking the quiet trails of mountain passes could help to quiet the voices.

Success. People said that all the time. How does it feel to have found so much success in doing what you love? The answer was always the same. Smile. Express your gratitude for the support of your family and friends that allowed you to pursue your passion, thank all the supportive fans, wrap your arm around the shoulder of your best friend, and thank him too. And sure. Rhett was grateful. Thankful and appreciative for what his life had given him, and for the rewards of hard work. But it was hard to feel like it was worth it, when in the most fundamental way, he was so deeply unfulfilled.

The guilt that tears at your soul when even the tiniest part of you regrets decisions that brought with them family and children... it’s immense. Of course Rhett loved his family, his wife, and his boys. How could he not? But God. Sometimes he even resented Link. If they’d never crossed paths, he could have lived without this nagging feeling in his gut every single day of his life. And what kind of friend did that make him? But they weren’t just friends, were they? No. Of course not. Link had to go and be his goddamn soulmate and ruin everything.

There were times Rhett wondered for how long he’d known. Was it when they laid together in that hotel room, wrapped up in each other in the light of the rising sun? Was it when Link’s soft mouth first pressed against his, sitting just that little bit too close on the top bunk? No. These moments were landmarks, for sure — planted flags marking out the edges of a path they’d been heading down ever since. But they weren’t where it had begun. He’d known all along, at least some part of him had. From the very first moment. Two halves of a whole.

If he’d just trusted himself, trusted what they had, it could have all been so different. He still remembered the night he’d ruined it all. He’d snapped. In a moment of weakness, lashed out at the only person who truly understood him. Link had wanted more, had somehow found the courage to ask for it, and Rhett had pushed him away with the words he knew would sting most — words that brought bile up in his throat. All because he was too afraid of what it all meant and who it made him — because being a bigoted jerk was somehow preferable. He should never have said it. His world was one soaked in prejudice, and he hated himself for spewing the same hateful shit he’d heard spilling from ignorant mouths around him his entire life.

That summer was supposed to be different. They weren’t going to spend it apart, but could Rhett really blame Link for wanting some space? He’d practically condemned the life they’d been leading — the one Link had wanted to pursue. So, he’d gone overseas and left it alone. But he wasn’t meant to come home to find Link had proposed marriage to a girl Rhett thought he was only seeing to make _him_ jealous. And he wasn’t supposed to get back at him for going through with the marriage by getting engaged himself. They weren’t supposed to fall apart… but they did. It had all gone so sideways, so fast; all because he was too afraid to believe in what they had.

It took years to rebuild what he’d thrown away that night with just a few heated remarks — the rift between them seeming like it may never close — but an inexorable bond is not so easily thwarted. They found their way back into each other’s arms, only those arms were now tied behind their backs.

Link liked to compartmentalize to keep their reality from unraveling. His focus was his strength. When they were together, there was only the two of them in all the cosmos. Rhett could see it in his eyes. But this hot little ball of anger burned a hole in Rhett’s gut when he thought about the hands that touched him the way he needed, touching someone else. Link was his. He had no right to such possessive thoughts. He himself had another life outside of the one they shared, one he was sure bothered Link just as much.

Link could be so easily riled up. His temper had gotten the best of him more times than Rhett could count, but Link had a way of boiling like an old kettle when it came to their mess. It could take weeks of Rhett’s passive aggressive sighs and sideways glances before Link came to a boil, but when he did, it was explosive. He was always Red-faced and hot with anger as he recalled each instance Rhett had put his other life before theirs, his voice going hoarse before he was through. So, Rhett knew Link cared, but sometimes he just needed a glimpse behind that poker face.

It never mattered how many times Link said _‘I love you’_ , Rhett wanted to be the _only_ one to hear those words. He was selfish and greedy, admittedly so. The time they found to be together — when they weren’t buried in work and at each other’s throats over it — would never be enough, but Rhett stole every second he could get. So, when Link set a pair of plane tickets on his lap when he got in the car to head into the office, it was with unmatched eagerness that Rhett tore into them to see what Link had planned.

They were return tickets to Toronto, Canada.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I'll be posting the next part pretty soon, and the whole fic should be done within a week or so. (I ACTUALLY MEAN THAT. I promise.)
> 
> RTR <3


	2. Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [I See You - Jon Middleton](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9HPYnPU7pM)   
> 

“Can you check my phone?” Link asked, reaching into his front, left pocket and pulling it out. “Damn thing’s about to vibrate my junk off.”

Rhett laughed, and took it from his hand. “I thought you turned off notifications.”

“I thought I did too.” Link shook his head. “Updates, man… every time.”

“Same password?”

“Always.”

“One day someone really is gonna hack us. You know that right?”

Link reached over and cuffed Rhett with the back of his hand. “Just check the dang phone, huh?” he ribbed.

Rhett traced Link’s password across the glass, and notifications riddled the screen. Emails that he’d promised to ignore, a couple of text messages from Stevie that Rhett had also received, and twitter notifications. Link had been mentioned in over 100 tweets. Rhett clicked on the first one he saw, and smiled as he read one after the other.

>   
>  _**‘Rhett’s always taking such sweet photos of his bf @linklamont.’** _
> 
> _**‘@linklamont when are you going to get him back for all these drowsy pictures?’**_
> 
> _**‘you can’t tell me @rhettmc doesn’t have more photos like these of @linklamont’**_

Rhett clicked on his own tweet, containing the link to instagram photo he’d posted, and read through a few new replies.

>   
>  **_‘At it again I see ;)’_**  
> 
> 
> _**‘Here I was trying to sleep, and you go posting this quality content.’** _

“Well?” Link asked, looking over at Rhett. “What’s up?”

Rhett flipped through a few more mentions before Link’s frustration grew and he leaned over to see the screen.

“Rhett! Really? With the goddamn picture?”

“What?” Rhett said, handing Link back his phone and taking out his own. “It’s tradition,” he winked, opening up his instagram to read the comments there.

Link rolled his eyes, shaking his head and gripping the wheel a little tighter in his hands. “You’re feeding them real good today, you know that?”

“Who?” Rhett asked, not looking up from his screen.

“The shippers.” Link’s brows were creased in the middle.

Rhett turned in his seat. “Oh?”

“Mmmhmm,” Link hummed. “I can practically hear Tumblr’s servers groaning from here,” he laughed.

Rhett chuckled. “You’re probably right.” He closed out to his home screen and held his finger over the Tumblr app.

“Don’t,” Link said, looking straight ahead. “I’d actually like someone to talk to on the rest of this drive. If you open that app, I’m leaving you on the side of the road.”

Rhett laughed one of those deep and full ones that had him cupping his hand over his chest. Link was right. Tumblr was a dangerous pastime. He behaved himself for the most part — his blog was both private and empty — he just liked to keep tabs on the little community that had them figured out.

“Fine.”

“Good thing there’s no wifi where we’re going,” Link shook his head with a smirk on his lip.

“Mmm. That reminds me!” Rhett sat up straighter in his seat, and stuffed his phone in his jacket pocket. “You finally gonna to tell me what the hell we’re doing in Canada?” he asked, looking out at the nearly empty highway they’d been on for over two hours.

“Like I said.” Link looked over at him with a cheeky sideways glance. “You’ll see.”

~~~ * ~~~

The calm water lapped at the gunnels of the boat as their guide pulled up alongside the long dock jutting out from the rocky shoreline of the island.

In front of them stood a rough rock face with cottage perched on top. It’s screened-in porch overlooked the water, large evergreen trees shot up from behind it, a few of them jutting out from the rocks near the water. The sky was turning pink behind it, the sun tucking itself away for the night. A large deck snaked its way down over the rocks and connected with the dock.

“Throw the line there, would ya?” The man standing at the motor called to Rhett, who was seated near the front of the boat.

“Yeah. Throw a line, Rhett,” Link teased, flashing him a wink.

“Oh shuddup,” Rhett muttered back, standing up on unsteady legs as he reached for the loop of rope under his feet; he tossed it over the bollard on the dock and tightened the line.

The guide hopped up out of the boat and secured a second rope before reaching out to take their bags. He set them down and then offered a hand to Link to help him up onto the dock.

“Thanks!” Link said, jumping up next to him as Rhett crawled out on his own.

“Think you two’ve got everything you’re gonna be needin’?” the guide asked, lifting off his hat to scratch at his hairline.

“Yeah,” Link replied. “I think so. They sent me an information packet last week, so I guess it’s just the keys.”

“Right!” The guide reached into the front pocket of his jeans and pulled them out. “Got a few here for ya. This one’s for the main cabin.” He held out the largest key. “These here are for the small guest lodge across the island, and this little one’s for the boathouse just over there.” He pointed to the shoreline just past the dock.

Link thanked him with a nod, and took the keys.

“Cell signal’s God-awful out here, but there’s a landline you can use if you need to reach anyone on the mainland. There’s a list of numbers tacked next to the phone.” He smiled and turned to untie the rear line. “Someone was out yesterday and stocked the fridge and cupboards with the things you requested.” He stepped past them to loosen the front loop. “You be sure to let us know if anything’s missing.”

“Will do.” Link shook the man’s hand. “Thanks again.”

“My pleasure.” the guide gave Link’s shoulder a pat, and then stepped down into the boat. He reeled in the lines, and ripped on the motor until it roared to life. He gave a friendly wave an headed back out into the open water.As the sound of the motor began to fade — the calls of birds and wind in the trees taking its place — Link threw his arm over Rhett’s shoulder and turned the two of them around to face the cottage. He leaned closer, hand tightly capping Rhett’s bicep as spoke softly in his ear.

“Home sweet home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as an FYI, [THIS](https://www.airbnb.ca/rooms/6993749?s=5TNheDdy#neighborhood) is Isle de RHINK ;)


	3. Part 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Irresistible - The Harbor](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUyqgn-fXiY)   
> 

“So…” Link asked tossing his bags on the floor and turning in a slow circle around the foyer that opened into the kitchen and living space. “Whaddaya think?”

Rhett looked around the room, taking in the vaulted ceilings and beams that ran across them. It was as serene as he could have hoped. The stunning kitchen was bright and clean, its counters adorned with baskets of fruit and bottles of wine. The rock facade fireplace sat beneath a thick live-edge mantle. And the view. It was stunning. The sky reflected off the water and cast a purple hue through the front patio and onto the floor where he stood.

“What do I think?” Rhett placed his bags next to Link’s and walked up to him, wrapping his long arm around Link’s waist and pulling him close.

Link’s laughed and wriggled in his arms for a moment, but his smile slowly faded as he looked up at Rhett with his lip drawn between his teeth.

“I think you’ve really outdone yourself, Neal.” One of Rhett’s hands ghosted up Link’s body, settling on the back of his neck, and he brought their lips together.

Link kissed with every muscle in his body. He kissed like it was a goddamn Olympic sport. His muscles were always tense under Rhett’s touch, like a coiled spring, his tenacious nature thrown into overdrive by desire. Rhett often felt like he was handling a live grenade with Link in his arms, and it was thrilling. Link’s tongue knew just how to dance with his own, and the soft feel of it invading his mouth was like a drug shot straight into his veins.

“I’m sorry,” Link whispered between a short parting of their lips. “I know… I know I haven’t been—”

“Shh.” Rhett kissed the words from his mouth, swallowing them down along with the groan he earned when he squeezed Link’s ass in his hand. He didn’t want to hear apologies, didn’t want to think about anything but being here; the rest of their world didn’t exist, not right now, not in this place.

Rhett walked them backward, cradling Link in his arms until the backs of his needs met the front edge of a plush armchair; he broke their kiss and grinned at Link as he playfully shoved him into it.

Link caught himself on the armrests, licking Rhett’s saliva from his lips; as Rhett knelt down in front of him, Link watched him like a predator, his eyes black with need and want.

“Take these off,” Rhett said, his voice deep and hungry as he raked his hands over Link’s thighs.

“Not wastin’ any time, are you?” Link flashed a devilish grin.

Rhett shook his head, sitting up tall on his knees, his lips ghosting across Link’s as he palmed the hardness growing between Link’s thighs. “I need to taste you.”

A primal growl rumbled out from Link’s chest, and he shoved Rhett back down between his knees. His fingers deftly worked open the button and fly of his jeans, and pulled them down over his thighs enough for his already leaking erection to spring free, falling back against his stomach.

Rhett bent down, wetting his lips, and ran his tongue along the underside of Link’s length. When Link groaned — gripping the arms of the chair so hard his knuckles turned white — Rhett rucked up Link’s t-shirt under his jacket, laying hot palms on his stomach and ribs.

Link bucked his hips, desire and impatience clear in his quick draw of breath, and the trembling of his thighs that squeezed Rhett’s torso.

Rhett grinned, his wet lips pressed to the head of Link’s cock, and then sliding down over it until Link filled his mouth.

Link hissed, both of his hands gripping firmly to the back of Rhett’s head, his fingers knotting into soft curls and scratching at the skin beneath them.

Rhett’s world swirled out focus, every sensation entirely focused on the man he was determined to worship. He hummed with electricity as Link’s nails dragged hot lines across his scalp. His stifled moans joined Link’s — the room echoing with pleasure — as Link’s eagerness for release had him thrusting up into Rhett’s mouth.

“Yeah—” Link’s satisfied whisper was choked off by the groan that took it over when Rhett relaxed his jaw, allowing Link to press against the back of his throat.

It didn’t matter that Rhett’s eyes watered under the strain. Looking up at Link lost in pleasure, perfectly pulled apart under his touch, it was always as perfect as it had been the very first time. That long neck bent back, those strangled attempts to speak and cuss, the way he nipped and gnawed at his lips until they were red and plump. Watching Link fall apart was something Rhett would never tire of; it was intoxicating.

Link’s breath grew more erratic with each swirl of Rhett’s tongue, and each pass of his lips. “Rhett…” he moaned, gripping Rhett’s hair tight between his fingers. “Please… I… I need to…”

Rhett hummed in approval, gripping tightly to Link’s hips as his lips separated from Link’s skin enough for him to speak. “Come for me, Link,” Rhett breathed before closing his lips around Link’s length once again.

Link grunted, one of his hands falling from Rhett’s hair and closing over Rhett’s hand on his lap.

Rhett lifted his fingers and intertwined them with Link’s, and when Rhett felt Link unraveling — his hips unable to maintain rhythm, his body riding the razor’s edge of orgasm — he hollowed his cheeks, and allowed Link to buck into the back of his throat as he came.

Link cursed and quivered as he spilled into Rhett’s mouth, pulsing over and over as his fingers tightly gripping between Rhett’s, leaving behind little half-moon scars on the back of Rhett’s hand.

Rhett held Link in his mouth, savouring the taste of the pleasure he’d given him, until his flesh began to soften, and the chaotic heaving chest began to even. As his lips parted from Link’s skin and their eyes met, Rhett’s heart skipped a beat.

Link smiled at him, his hair tossed up at the back, a few strands hanging down over his sweat-dampened forehead and sticking to the arms of his crooked glasses.

Rhett smiled back, standing up on his knees and leaning in to press his cheek to Link’s chest. He wrapped his arms around Link’s waist and breathed him in. “This is perfect.”

“Mmm,” Link hummed, his arms encircling Rhett’s shoulders, hands warming over his back and then back up to gently pet Rhett’s hair. “It’s nice.” He craned his neck to press a kiss into soft curls. “But I don’t know if it’s perfect just yet,” Link said, his voice heavy with mischief as he pushed Rhett back and got to his feet.

Rhett looked up at him, his brows creased in question as Link did up his pants.

“Come on,” Link said, taking Rhett’s hand, pulling him to his feet, and walking him further into the living room. He smirked and shoved Rhett backward onto the couch, and crawled on top of him. “My turn.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That escalated quickly... ;)


	4. Part 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Blinded - Emmit Fenn](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UdbsqCd6RU)   
> 

Rhett leaned on the rail of the deck, staring out in the beautiful night that had unfolded around them while they were wrapped up in each other.

Flecks of starlight leapt from the flat calm of the lake, blending seamlessly together with the sky where the water met the horizon. Faint chirps of crickets climbed up from the tall grass at the edge of the tree line. Soft wisps of smoke twisted into the air from the grill where Link was standing, tending a couple steaks and skewered vegetables.

“Smells good,” Rhett said, turning around, resting his lower back against the rail, hands tucked in his front pockets.

Link flipped the thick slabs of meat, and they hissed on the hot iron. “It’s does, doesn’t it?” Link nudged his glasses up his nose with the back of his hand. “I might not be able to cook, but what kinda man would I be if I couldn’t grill out?”

Rhett chuckled and crossed the deck to stand at Link’s back. “Thank you for this,” he whispered in Link’s ear, wrapping his arms high around Link’s waist.

Link’s head fell back against his chest, humming as his eyes fluttered closed. “Least I could do…” he breathed.

“I just... really needed it…” Rhett rested his chin on the top of Link’s head.

“I know.” Link twisted around to look up at Rhett. “Me too.”

Rhett leaned down and kissed him, his hands warming down Link’s body and gripping at his hips.

Link smiled against Rhett’s mouth before he pulled back from the kiss. “Ah, ah,” he said, pushing Rhett’s chin away with an index finger. “These steaks ain’t gunna cook ‘emselves.” He smirked and turn back to the grill.

With a sigh, Rhett reluctantly released his hold.

“Mind setting the table?” Link asked, turning the skewers over a final time. “Everything’s almost done.”

“Sure.” Rhett gripped Link’s shoulder at the base of his neck and gave it a light squeeze. He headed back into the cottage and began to set the table with white china and shining flatware. He took a few flowers from the large vase on the counter and placed them in a smaller one, and then set it in the center of the round dining table. Tall glasses of water, a pair of ringed napkins, and Rhett’s favorite red wine poured into two wine glasses finished the job.

“Looks nice.” Link ducked into the kitchen, taking a large platter from the counter. “I’ll be right back.”

Rhett smiled, watching Link walk back to the grill, admiring his wide shoulders tapering down to his narrow waist and hips as he went. Rhett shook himself from the distraction of Link’s swaying body, and turned back to the table. It did look nice.

Though it wasn’t particularly cold — turns out even Canada is warm in late June — when Rhett looked at the fireplace, he couldn’t ignore its call. Wood sat in the rack, already stacked and prepared with kindling and crinkled paper. He opened the damper, struck a long match, and set the paper alight in a few places. He watched as the kindling caught fire, crouched down in front of the flames when Link spoke from behind him.

“Nice touch, Casanova.”

Rhett turned to see Link admiring the room, setting their dinner down on the table and sliding out a chair.

“Come sit,” he smiled.

Several bouts of laughter and few glasses of wine later, Rhett was warmed from the inside out. Even Link had drank a glass or two, and wine had never been his thing. Their socked feet rubbed against each other’s under the table; their laughter had faded, the snaps and crackle of the fire having replaced it long ago.

Rhett reached under the table and closed his hand over Link’s knee, smiling at him across the table.

But as Link smiled back, his eyes darted over Rhett’s shoulder. “What was that?” he asked, tossing the napkin from his lap onto the table.

Rhett turned to look behind him. “What was what?” he asked, unable to see whatever it was that had gotten Link’s attention.

”There was a light...” Link’s eyes were trained on the windows that looked out into the back patio. He got up slowly, and walked toward the door. “There!” He pointed, beckoning Rhett with his other hand. “Look!”

Rhett looked out into the darkness and quickly spotted the flicker of drifting lights in the air.

“Fireflies…” Link whispered, taking Rhett’s hand in his.

Rhett looked down at their entwined fingers — his own clasping between Link’s a bit tighter when he felt the cold, metal band that wrapped around his ring finger. The twinge in his gut didn’t last, Link’s child-like smile soothed it away in an instant. Rhett looked back out at the soft glow of the curious insects on their doorstep.

Link turned the door knob and stepped out into the night. He looked up at the growing glow of flies gathering above them. “I Haven’t seen these since I was a kid.” 

Rhett followed him out into the moonlight. “Me either.”

They’d laid together in the scrubby fields of the pasture watching fireflies more times than he could count, but Rhett struggled to recall the last time. So, looking up into the sky lit with them, Rhett was glad this could be their new last.

Link began to turn in place, chin tipped to the sky, and a wide smile on his face.

Rhett watched him for a long moment, completely entranced, before Link finally met his gaze.

“What?” he asked, brows crinkled.

Rhett grinned, shaking his head just that little bit. “It’s nothing,” he said, reaching out to recapture Link’s hand in his. “I’m just happy you’re happy.”

Link smiled. “I’m more than happy.” He stood up on his toes and pressed a kiss to Rhett’s lips.

They stood there — bathed in the combined glow of the fireflies, the moon, and the stars — wrapping themselves up in the essence of the other. Rhett held Link close, letting the feeling of his strong hands weaken his knees, letting soft but insistent lips leave him gasping for breath. There were very few moments in Rhett’s life that he knew would be forever stitched into the fabric of who he was, and this was one of them.

“I love you,” he whispered, his mouth pressed to the corner of Link’s own.

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a deep fascination with fireflies, and they are actually pretty rare where I live. I've seen them a handful of times in my life, and each one of those moments is so special to me. Thanks for reading :)


	5. Part 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Cinnamon - Jome](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-i6QfXbbV4s)   
> 

With dinner’s dishes stowed away, and a fresh bottle of wine uncorked, the two of them sat on the sofa. Link was curled against Rhett, tucked in under his arm sipping from a hot cup of coffee while Rhett swirled the merlot in his glass. The fire was burning low now, the last log Rhett had laid beginning to fall apart into glowing embers.

“This is nice,” Rhett hummed, resting his chin on Link’s head.

“Mmm,” Link agreed, sipping down the last of his coffee. “A long day ending on the right note.”

Rhett sat up straight, and Link mirrored him. “Ending?” he asked, sliding out from behind Link and getting to his feet. “I’m not done with you yet.” He held out an open hand, his lip curled in devilish smirk.

“Oh really?” Link set his mug down on the coffee table and took Rhett’s hand. “Got plans, do you?”

Rhett nodded and began tugging him down the short hallway until the two of them stood together in the bathroom that adjoined with the master bedroom. Rhett’s eyes roamed hungrily over every inch of Link’s body, his hands gliding down over Link’s frame, his fingers hooking under his baseball tee.

Link swallowed hard, and then captured Rhett’s lips between his, kissing him roughly as Rhett tugged his shirt up and over his shoulders, his own hands working open the fly of Rhett’s pants.

They stripped each other clean, kissing the new skin they exposed, breathing in the scent of each other as their hands roamed over every inch they could reach. They made their way through the wide opening of the glass-fronted walk-in shower — Rhett pushing Link up against the cold tile as he reached around him to turn on the water.

Link gasped as the tap sprang to life, his body trembling as the cold water in the lines sprayed out from the showerhead; his back arched and he pressed his growing length against Rhett’s thighs as the water warmed and air began to billow with steam.

Rhett pressed soft kisses into Link’s skin, along his clavicles and in the little dips in his skin at the base of his neck, water splashing against his back and shoulders. Link was rocking against him, his own hungry mouth nipping against Rhett’s throat, hard enough Rhett knew it was leaving marks — little reminders for later.

Rhett peppered a few more kisses before he stepped back into the streaming water, beckoning Link to join him. When he did, Rhett reached over his head and grabbed the body wash and loofa he’d unpacked earlier. He lathered up a rich foam as Link pawed at his skin.

Link smiled and closed his hands over Rhett’s, gently stealing away the loofa, the suds working out between his fingers. He pressed the loofa into Rhett’s chest and began to rub his skin.

“Mmm,” Rhett hummed, his head falling back as he allowed Link to wash his chest and stomach, run his large hands over his arms and shoulders.

“That feel nice?” Link breathed as his wrapped his arm around Rhett to scrub his lower back, his long fingers slipping between Rhett’s round cheeks.

Rhett groaned, nodding and rolling his hips when Link’s other hand encircled his cock, pulling moans from him in slow strokes. And when he was starting to feel the pull in his gut, Link pulled back and tossed him the loofa.

“I scratched your back, now you scratch mine,” he winked and turned his back to Rhett, using his palms to brace himself against the wall.

Rhett stared at the planes of Link’s body as he squeezed more soap onto the loofa, watching the trickles of water run their way down from his hair, over his shoulder blades and down into the dips of his spine before spilling over his backside.

“You’re so fuckin’ beautfiul.”

Link chuckled, low in his throat. “Then put your hands on me already,” he teased, wiggling his hips.

Rhett smiled and began to softly scrub Link’s shoulders and back, stepping closer to him to press against the cleft of Link’s ass.

Link loved to tease, the attention always went to his head, and he knew how wild he could drive Rhett with very little effort. And as much as Rhett enjoyed that side of Link, he had to admit It was rather infuriating to be driven to the edge of reason in the most inappropriate of locations, only to be left wanting and hard when Link decided he’d had enough fun.

Rhett sensed the same devious energy flowing from Link now, boiling the water from his skin. He was grinding his ass against Rhett, the soap running down his back, slickening Rhett’s cock as it slid through his cleft and pressed against his opening.

The two of them had thoroughly explored nearly every possible combination and configuration of their bodies over the years, but they certainly had their favorites, and though this one was near the top of Rhett’s list, Link preferred the roles reversed. So, it was no surprise to Rhett that just when he thought Link was about to let him in — to let him fuck him raw right here under the hot spray of the shower — he spun around and shoved Rhett against the wall.

“Ah, ah,” he purred against Rhett’s throat, his hand pressing Rhett’s chest to the wall. “Not tonight.”

Rhett groaned and bucked against Link’s thigh. “I want you so bad,” he whined.

“You’ll get me…” He grabbed Rhett’s ass in both of his hands and pulled him close. “I promise.” He looked up at Rhett under the steaming water. “But tonight… I’m taking what’s mine.” He kissed Rhett, deep and hungry, the water running through their hair and down the backs of their necks, rinsing the last of the suds from their skin.

Rhett walked them forward and reached behind Link to shut off the water, the small shower stall echoing with the sound of water dripping from their skin for a few moments before Rhett opened the glass door — letting the steam spill into the bathroom and along the floor to the bedroom. He stepped out onto the cool tile, his skin still dripping wet when he looked back over his shoulder at Link.

“What are you waiting for, then?” he asked with a wink before he slipped around the corner into the bedroom.

Before he could pluck his towel from the chair in the corner, Link was on him, pressing against him and shoving him onto the bed. Rhett was face down on the soft comforter when Link climbed on top of him, breathing hot into the nape of his neck and grinding their bodies together.

“It’s been so long," he growled, accentuating his point with a buck of his hips, his erection pressing firmly along the crack of Rhett’s ass as he reached over the bed and pulled the small bottle of lube from his bag. “Too fucking long.”

Rhett gasped as Link grabbed him hard by the shoulder and flipped him over, shoving him up the mattress until his head was cradled in the small pile of pillows. He watched with wide and hungry eyes as Link coated himself from base to tip.

Link’s chest was flushed, the light from dim lamp in the corner of the room picked up the droplets of water that still wet his skin as he pushed his way between Rhett’s thighs, aligning their bodies. “Need to see you…” he whispered, drying one of his hands on the towel at the foot of the bed, leaving the other slick with lube. “Need to see your face when I…” His long index finger pressed against Rhett’s puckering entrance, and pushed inside.

The words Rhett wanted to say caught in his throat when Link leaned over him, his finger curling inside of him as he lifted Rhett’s lower back from the mattress. His body hovered over Rhett’s, their eyes locking.

“Look at you,” Link whispered, his gaze finally shifting to drift down over Rhett’s body to the place where they were joined. “So nice wrapped tight around my fingers,” he said, sliding a second one in alongside the first.

“Oh, fuck…” Rhett groaned, bucking his hips to meet the shallow thrust of Link’s hand. “Link… fuck…” His eyelids fluttered shut, and his head fell back into the pillows.

Link stroked into him slowly a few times before his fingers stilled. “Look at me, Rhett,” he said, his voice confident and controlled.

Rhett tried to pull himself together enough to obey, but he could barely keep his head up because, even still, Link’s fingers were pressing against just the right spot inside of him. When the waves of pleasure subsided just enough to allow him to crane his neck, he was met with Link’s hungry gaze.

“That’s good, Rhett…” he praised. “Just. Like.”

Rhett felt an instant of emptiness as Link’s fingers slid out of him before they were replaced by his thick and rigid length, the whole of it thrust inside in one quick pulse of his hips.

“That.”

Rhett cried out, pleasure and pain indiscernible from one another as Link rolled his body forward so their lips could meet.

Link pressed Rhett’s thighs to his chest as he began to thrust into him, their mouths working together in the perfect way they always had.

They fit together, one body perfectly filling the other; This was just the carnal extension of the bond they shared in every other aspect of their lives. The harmony their voices found, the way they finished each other's sentences, it was all mirrored in the lock and key of their bodies. Even though it had been many years since they’d first allowed themselves to have each other this way, there was a hint of that same magic every time their bodies met and panted breathes were shared.

Link’s strong hands pinned Rhett’s biceps to the mattress as he filled him over and over, groaning out his appreciation and love, and all Rhett could do was try to remain present as his building orgasm threatened to steal him away into the throes of pleasure and deny him the sight of Link’s perfect face as he reached his own release. That might be Rhett’s favorite part of all, watching Link fall apart, knowing he was the cause.

“I need it, Link… harder!”

With the pace of his thrusts coming so fast now that Rhett could barely hang on, he felt the stutter in Link’s rhythm, that telltale erratic jerk of his hips and the stitching of his brows that Rhett knew all too well meant Link was teetering on the edge.

“Yes!” Rhett moaned, knowing the next words out of his mouth were going to send both of them toppling over the edge. “Come inside me! Fill me up!”

“Fuck!” Link cried out in pleasure, buried deep inside Rhett when he began to pulse with his release.

Rhett felt the warmth inside him, felt Link’s erection throb against his prostate as his come slickened the final hammering thrusts that sent Rhett tumbling after him into the afterglow. Rope after rope of pearly fluid spilled across his stomach and chest as Link continued fucking into him, slow and shallow.

Link collapsed on his chest, his softening length sliding out as his panted breath warmed across Rhett’s skin.

Rhett smiled, his body weak with exertion. He wrapped his arm around Link, his palm coming to rest in Link’s damp hair. “Perfect,” he breathed, his eyes drifting closed.

“Mmm,” Link hummed in agreement, his chest vibrating against Rhett’s. “You are.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> This smut is provided in part by support from viewers like you ;)
> 
> RTR <3


	6. Part 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Wild Blood - Dustin Tebbutt](https://youtu.be/gHenvP4UTxs)   
> 

The sun rose over the lake; the orange glow on the horizon was shining in through the patio door of the bedroom, small flecks of dust flitted through the air, picking up pinpricks of sunlight.

Rhett had been lying awake since the sky was dark. His dream had woken him. It wasn’t a nightmare, quite the opposite, really. It was warm and full of love. He and Link sharing soft moments together, all of passing through his mind like a moving scrapbook. Even a few hints of the night before had snuck there way in.

Link was curled up next to him, limbs all tangled up in the white sheets, his mouth hanging open as he softly snored. His cheeks and chin were flecked with the salt and pepper colour of his stubble. Rhett brushed away the sweep of hair that had fallen across his forehead, his fingers moving delicately so as not to wake him.

“So perfect,” he whispered, smiling down at Link, taking in every detail so he could stow this memory away with the others. After a few more stolen moments, Rhett sighed, gently pulled back the covers from his waist, and got out of bed. He was as careful as he could manage, but froze in place when Link groaned. Rhett turned and watched as he smacked his lips and rolled over before his gentle snores began again.

He started with coffee, setting a pot on to brew, and then opened the fridge. It was stocked with everything Rhett loved, and a few of Link’s staples. Rhett pulled out a carton of eggs and the small pack of bacon. He searched through the cabinets for a skillet and lit the propane range.

The bacon spit up at his bare chest and stomach, and he winced and wiped it away with a tea towel. Perhaps low-hanging sweatpants weren’t the ideal attire for such a task, but he was nearly done anyway.

The last drips of coffee were trickling out of the perk when Rhett heard Link’s barefeet padding across the floor.

“I think I’d like to wake up to the smell of bacon every day.”

Rhett looked over his shoulder, smiling as he watched Link cross the cabin into the kitchen, stretching his arms up over his head and yawning. He was wearing only boxer shorts under his open bathrobe, and he looked perfectly disheveled. His hair in just the kind of disarray Rhett liked, and his sleepy eyes big and round.

“Mornin’, bo,” Rhett said.

Link grinned, rubbing his eye as he shuffled up to Rhett’s back.

Rhett turned his attention back to the stove, flipping the eggs one last time as Link wrapped his arms around his waist and rested his cheek in the center of Rhett’s back.

“Mornin’,” Link breathed.

~~~ * ~~~

The water was calm as they slid the canoe into the shallows. Link walked alongside the bow and hopped in as Rhett steadied it from the rear.

“You sure you remember how to steer?” Link asked, looking of his shoulder at Rhett as he settled into the rear seat.

“Like ridin’ a bike, Neal,” he winked, driving his paddle into the lakebed and shoving them off.

Link directed them through several channels, and between a few small islands along the coastline of the lake. He had a map, but he hadn’t yet told Rhett where they were heading, and if Rhett was honest, he didn’t really care. Just being out on the water, the two of them the only souls within miles, it was perfectly relaxing.

“Just up ahead,” Link pointed off to the right toward a narrow channel between the mainland and a large island. “They call it ‘Hole in the Wall’,” Link said, turning around to smile at Rhett.

Rhett looked up at the expansive wall of stone that began to rise up out of the water on either side of him, the tops of the rocky shelves peppered in shrubs and trees. Along one wall, the rock slanted down toward a small sanding outcropping on the water, providing a place for them to pull up on shore.

Link hopped out of the canoe and tugged it up onto the sand and waved for Rhett to join him. “Come on!” he smiled, practically hopping with excitement.

Rhett climbed out of the canoe and looked up at the steep rock faces. “Wait a minute… are we—”

“Cliff jumping?” Link’s brows leapt up his forehead and he grabbed Rhett’s hand. “Yep!”

Rhett’s heart began pounding in his ears. This is something the two of them had always wanted to do together, and they’d played at it before. There were a few places along the Cape Fear where you could climb to about eight feet from the water’s surface, but here, the cliff face they were slowly scaling together was at least twenty feet high.

“We’re jumpin’ off that?” Rhett asked, pointing up at the cliff. 

Link, who’d been leading the way, turned around. “What’s the matter, McLaughlin? You scared?”

“Pfft!” Rhett exclaimed, rushing forward and shoving Link up the hill, jabbing at his ribs and tickling with prodding fingers as they reached the top.

The view from the top of the cliff was beautiful. The water glittered with the reflection of the trees and sky, but the view could only hold Rhett’s attention for so long.

Link stood at his side, his face lit with a soft smile as he looked out over the water and up at the sky, his blue eyes brighter than Rhett had ever seen them. Link turned to Rhett, his brows quirked up over his glasses.

“You ready?” he asked, reaching down to peel off his t-shirt.

Rhett admired the way the sunlight leapt from Link’s tanned skin, how it cast shadows in the divets of his collar bones. He tried to speak, but his mouth had gone dry.

“Well?” Link asked, taking off his glasses and setting them in the pile with his shirt, cell phone, and wallet. He paused, looking up at Rhett. “We doin’ this, or are you just gonna keep starin’?” he chuckled, flexing the muscles of his shoulders just enough that Rhett knew it was intentional tease.

Rhett shook his head and pulled his own shirt over his head and set it down with Link’s. He took Link’s hand and pulled him in for a quick kiss. “You fuckin’ tease,” he said, slapping Link’s rear end.

Link laughed, nipping at Rhett’s lip. “You first, big guy,” he winked, pinching Rhett’s behind and shoving him closer to the cliff’s edge. 

Rhett chuckled, shaking out his arms and legs before he stood with his toes curling over the rock. Rhett’s heart began to pick up its pace, the drop seemed impossibly high now that he was staring down at it, but he was ready. He bent his knees and leapt into the air. He could hear Link hooting in celebration as he plummeted down toward the water.

When he hit the surface, the water was icy cold and Rhett struggled to hold the air in his lungs. It was such a rush that Rhett could practically feel the endorphins rushing through his veins. Rhett sunk down in the water, looking up at the surface until the splash and ripple he’d made disappeared. He swam a bit deeper, looking up through the clear water at the cliff face, holding his breath. Though it was muffled, he could hear Link calling his name, and he could hear the panic in it.

Rhett smiled, and after a few moments longer, he kicked his feet and shot up to the surface, tossing back his hair and treading water with his arms.

Link stared down at him with his arms crossed over his chest, his lips pursed in disapproval.

“What?” Rhett asked, trying his best to sound innocent.

Link said nothing, simply waited a moment longer before taking a small step back and leaping out from the cliff’s edge and hurtling through the air, arms flailing and hollering out with excitement as he splashed down into the water a few feet from Rhett.

Rhett flinched as Link sprang up out of the water next to him, wrapping his arms around his neck and pulling him under. The two of the wrestled and splashed until they tired, and Link wrapped himself around Rhett’s long body in the shallows near the canoe.

“You are such a shit sometimes, you know that?” Link said, breathing out a sigh, clasping his fingers together behind Rhett’s neck

“Yeah… maybe,” Rhett said brushing a few hairs back from Link’s forehead and tracing a thumb over his stubbled chin. “But I’m _your_ shit, so… how mad can ya be?”

Link shook his head. “Unbelievable…” He smiled, leaned in, and pressed his lips to Rhett’s in a soft, gentle kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! :)


	7. Part 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Wildfire - SYML](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VeXQOz75cy0)   
> 

The campfire licked up into the darkness, sending sparks sailing through the night sky; Rhett watched them as they drifted up into the canopy of trees overhead until they flickered out. Through the flames, he could see Link reach into a small cooler and grab two bottles of beer.

“What a day…” Link breathed out, stepping around the fire and plunking down in a camping chair next to Rhett. “You good?” he asked, twisting the beer cap under the bottom of his t-shirt.

“Yeah, I got it.” Rhett rested the edge of his own cap on the wooden bench next to him and smacked the cap free.

“Fire’s nice,” Link smiled and then took a swig of the Keith’s beer that they’d found stocking the fridge.

“Mmm,” Rhett hummed around his bottle. “So’s this brew.”

“Yeah. Not bad.” Link nodded, taking another long swig.

They sat quietly, staring into the dancing flames for a few long moments before the snapping crackle of the wood was interrupted by the chiming of a pocketed ringtone. Link jolted in surprise, scrambling to root his phone out from the back of his jeans.

“Sorry,” he said, silencing it. “No phones... I know.”

Rhett shook his head, and reached out to take Link’s hand in his. “It’s fine,” he lied. Rhett’s own phone was tucked in the nightstand drawer. When they had these quiet escapes from their reality, he committed to them entirely, but Link was harder to convince. Rhett never asked him to turn his phone off — knowing that caused Link more anxiety than it relieved — but he did ask that it be silenced and only be used when expressly necessary.

“I didn’t think it’d even work out here, I’m so—”

“Shh, Link.” Rhett turned to him. “It’s fine. Just forget it, okay? It’s fine. Really.”

Link smiled, lifting his weight and shifting his chair a bit closer, their hands folded together now resting on Rhett’s lap.

“Thanks for today,” Rhett said, looking straight ahead at the moonlight reflecting off the flat calm of the lake. “Thanks for all of this.”

Link squeezed Rhett’s hand tight in his own. “You’re diggin’ the Canadian wilderness then, huh?”

“Very much,” Rhett smiled. “It’s kinda perfect.” A long quiet pause followed, the two of them tracing lines on the other’s hand with their thumbs. “My God… That water is like glass.”

“Mmm,” Link hummed, his hand slipping away from Rhett’s. He stood, setting his empty bottle in the ground next to his chair and quickly stripped off his jacket and t-shirt.

“What are you—”

“What’s the matter, big man?” Link took off his glasses and pulled off one of his shoes, then the other. “Suddenly bashful?” he winked, tossing his jeans into Rhett’s lap.

Rhett shook his head, chuckling under his breath. “Listen. I’ve never been the exhibitionist of the two of us.” He shoved Link’s pants off his lap and got up, beginning to unbutton his shirt. “But I ain’t about to miss out on this.”

“Atta boy, Rhett.” Link pushed Rhett’s shirt off his shoulders and kissed him, his hands making quick work of Rhett’s belt.

Rhett groaned into his mouth before their kiss fell apart. “I’d reckon that water’s gotten pretty cold... you sure your little ass it up for it?” he teased.

“You might have to keep me warm, big guy,” Link smiled, his lips ghosting over Rhett’s.

“I’mma do more than keep you warm if you keep that up,” Rhett practically growled, taking over removing the rest of his clothes; his progress was interrupted several times so that he could press his mouth to Link’s neck, shoulders, and chest — to rip down Link’s briefs, leaving them puddled on the ground at his feet — until they were standing with their backs to the fire looking out over the water.

Link looked up at him, his expression warm and soft, the challenge Rhett had seen there a few moments earlier, all but vanished as he reached out and took Rhett’s hand.

Rhett squeezed it tightly and walked together with Link into the shallows. The water lapped at their skin; in the heat of the day it had caressed their weary muscles and washed the sweat from their foreheads. But in the cool evening air, it raised the hair on their arms and pimpled their skin.

Link took the first step into deeper water, gasping as it rose up over his waist, his hand slipping out of Rhett’s as he clenched his fists in the air. “Holy shit! That’s freakin’ cold! Ho!”

Rhett laughed, leaning over and cupping his chest.

Link took a few deep calming breaths before he began to reprimand. “Get your giant ass in the water, you jerk!”

“Hokay,” he smirked, walking out to join Link, trying to maintain as much composure as possible when the water began to lick his most sensitive skin, but it was practically impossible to hide the discomfort.

“Not so tough after all, eh there McLaughlin?”

Rhett shimmied closer to him. “How ‘bout you talk to me…” he reached a hand out beneath the water’s surface, “when you put your arms in, Neal!” He reached out and wrapped his arms around Link’s waist and lifted him out of the water, holding him up in the air.

“Rhett. No. Rhett. Don’t!” Link squirmed in his arms, helpless and giggling as Rhett leapt out into the deep water and the two of sank into the calm blackness of the lake.

Rhett held Link close, wrapping him up in his arms as they twisted together in the water. Rhett’s hand smoothed over Link’s back and up his neck to tangle in his drifting hair, feeling Link’s chest vibrate against his, listening to the water-muffled moan that flowed from his lips.

Link curled into him, grasping desperately around his shoulders and pressing his body to Rhett’s as they burst out of the water together, Link wrapped tightly around Rhett’s waist, Rhett’s own feet barely gripping on the pebbled lake bottom.

He held Link to his chest, his warm breath washing over cooled skin. Water ran down the back of Link’s neck and over Rhett’s hands splayed across his back.

“Kiss me, Rhett.”

“Okay.”

They made love that night. They took their time. So much of the time they shared was rushed, scheduled, and squeezed in. A quick release of tension locked up in a supply closet had its merits, but there was no replacement for hours of revelry. Wrapped up in each other, tumbling through the night in each other’s arms, they existed only for each other until the pleasure of it all carried them into a dreamless sleep.

 

~~~ * ~~~

Rhett awoke to an empty bed, the sheets next to him cool to the touch. The sky outside unsettled and grey, the sun unable to pierce it through.

“Link?” he said softly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. But the cabin was silent. He sat up, throwing off the blankets and getting to his feet. He stretched his arms over his head and twisted the aches from his back before poking his head in the bathroom. Empty.

“Link?” he called out a little louder this time, wrapping himself up in a robe and stepping into the living room. “Where are you?” he muttered to himself, shuffling to the kitchen counter and pouring himself a glass of water as looked out over the lake. The mist clung to the surface, the trees of the far shore almost entirely obscured in the soft haze. It was beautiful.

The sudden vibration of the countertop startled Rhett, sending water sloshing out of his glass over his hand and arm. “God dammit…” he flicked the water from his hand when the lit screen of Link’s phone caught his attention.

 _**‘Christy 2 iMessages’** _  
_**‘Christy Voicemail’** _

Rhett felt his anger welling up inside him, his hand trembling as snatched the phone from the counter, gritting his teeth. He hesitated only a moment before he tapped the text message notification and the screen prompted him to enter Link’s password. He entered it and began to read the string of messages. This was wrong. It was an invasion of privacy, but Rhett was beyond reason.

Rhett scrolled back up to see the conversation that had started last night.

 **Christy:** I left a voicemail. Message me when you get a chance  
**Link:** Sorry. Couldn’t take the call. Everything ok?  
**Christy:** Yeah. I guess. Just missing you  
**Link:** I miss you too

Rhett’s jaw was clenched so tight he thought his teeth would crack.

 **Christy:** You having fun?  
**Link:** It’s a business trip Chris. It’s not meant to be fun  
****Christy:** ** You’ll be home soon? ** **  
**** **Link:** Soon. Say hi to the kids for me  
**Christy:** I will.  
****Link:**** Goodnight hun ** **  
******Christy:** Goodnight

These messages were innocent enough, Rhett was angry, sure. They agreed. No phones. But the following one, and the three unread messages beneath it, stabbed through Rhett’s heart and stole the breath from his lungs.

 **Link:** I love you. ** **  
**** **Christy:** I love you too Link. ****  
**** **Christy:** Always ** **  
**Christy:****** Forever

The back door to the cabin swung open and Rhett turned to see Link come strolling in, his arms full of freshly chopped firewood. “Alright, using the axe was probably ill-advised, but hey. Firewood!"

Rhett looked down at Link’s phone. _Always. Forever._

“Rhett?” Link said, setting down the wood. “What is it?”

Rhett held up Link’s phone.

“You read…” Link stumbled over the pile of wood as he fumbled over his words. “Rhett… I’m sorry… I know we said— But—”

“Save it, Link.” He met Link in the middle of the room and shoved the phone into his chest. “This is just a _‘business trip’_ , after all… right?”

“Rhett…” Link reached for him, but Rhett pushed him back.

“Don’t,” he snarled, turning away and storming to the bedroom; he slammed the door behind him and laid his back against it. He slid down onto the floor, his arms puddling in his lap as tears began to stream down his cheeks.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love y'all <3


	8. Part 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [In The Morning - FIELDS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7l2GsNZO_o)   
> 

The guest bunkie was neatly made up when Rhett pushed open the sliding door and threw his bag onto the bunk. He was dripping wet, the sky having opened up over him as he crossed the island. Link had tried to follow him, but when Rhett turned on his heels, staring daggers at him, he thought better of it.

Rhett could still see the main cabin through the trees when he looked out the large pane window next to the door; the glass was flecked with droplets of water, some of them joining together and streaming down in haphazard lines. His breath began to fog the glass when he threw the curtain closed.

He brought his hands to his hair and pulled until his scalp ached. He cursed under his breath and collapsed on the end of the bed, deflating into himself and falling back to lay flat on the hard mattress, his knees bent over the edge, shoe tapping out a dissonant rhythm on the floor.

“How did we get here?” he muttered, folding his elbow over his eyes. “Such a fuckin’ mess…”

The rain pattered the roof most of the day as Rhett read and dozed in and out of restless sleep. He’d grabbed a few apples and a box of granola bars when he left, but he couldn’t bring himself to eat anything. He’d gone to the window once, seeing Link standing on the patio of the cabin, hunched over the rail, looking as broken as Rhett felt. He ignored the instinct to go to him, letting the anger that was still roiling anchor him in his distrust and hurt.

When the rain finally let off in the mid-afternoon, and Rhett had grown tired of feeling like a full-grown man living in a dollhouse, he threw on his jacket and walked out to the edge of the rocky outcropping just through the clearing and stand of trees behind the bunkie.

The wind had kicked up, and it rippled the water’s surface, small caps of white on the peaks of short waves that lapped the shoreline. The mist had thickened to a dense fog, and everything in front of him more than a few feet away was blurred out in grey. The air was heavy, but there was something comforting in the weight of it on his shoulders as he set his jacket on the ground and sat down, his legs hanging over the rocks.

“This seat taken?”

Rhett couldn’t help the automatic smile that began to curl his lip before he repressed it. He let the silence hang between them for a long moment before he shook his head.

Link settled next to him, not close enough to touch, but Rhett could feel the warmth of him. He didn’t speak, but Rhett listened to his breathing sync with his own.

“Do you remember that day on the river?” Rhett asked, breaking the silence, staring straight ahead into the mist. “When the fog got so thick you couldn’t see the hand in front of your face?”

Link let out a quiet sound of amusement. “Yeah,” he said. “Yeah I do.”

“I didn’t think we’d ever find our way home.”

“Mmm.” Link shifted closer. “Sometimes I wish we never had.”

Rhett huffed softly. “Think we would have fared well in the North Carolinan wilderness as pre-teens?”

Link chuckled under his breath. “I mean… no, but… sometimes I just wanna get lost with you.”

“This isn’t lost enough for ya?” Rhett gestured weakly to the trees and wilderness.

Link didn’t reply, he simply pressed his thigh to Rhett’s.

“No, Link.” Rhett shifted away. “You don’t just get to fix it like that.”

“Rhett. I said I was sorry. I don’t—”

“Link. God. Don’t you get it?” Rhett asked, turning to face him. “Why’d you answer that text?” He paused, but not long enough to allow Link to respond if he even planned to. “Seems to me like you’re perfectly content being found.”

“You know what, Rhett?” he said, sucking on his teeth. “Fuck you, man.” Link shoved him. “You think any of this shit is easy?” He got up and turned his back.

“Of course I don’t! You think I don’t fuckin’ know that!?” Rhett stood and grabbed Link’s shoulder and spun him around. “Like I’m not married? Like all of that doesn’t affect me too?”

Link squared off with him, staring up at him, pained and tortured.

“But you wanna know the difference between you and I, Link?” Rhett asked, his lip quivering. “ _I’m_. Fucking. Trying.” Everything ached. Every muscle and bone. His body was exhausted after years of fighting the same battle. Weary and broken.

“Rhett…” Link’s eyes were glassy behind his mist-flecked lenses. His hands trembling as they rose up from his sides to cup Rhett’s cheeks. “I…” He swallowed hard, his eyes traveling over Rhett’s features, settling on his lips.

By no choice, no volition of his own, Rhett’s hands had found their way to Link’s waist, pulling him closer. His breath came in shallow draws, his eyes darting between Link’s until their slightly parted lips were so close they were breathing the same air.

Link close the tiny gap between them and closed lips over Rhett’s, kissing him as deeply as he ever had. His hands desperately grasping the collar of his shirt and the back of his neck, trying to hold on when the force of their kiss threatened to take the legs out from under them both.

Rhett wrapped his arms around Link, squeezing him tight to his chest, kissing him with everything he had. This was the man he loved, the man he wanted more than anything; he was everything — his soul’s mate — but it got away from them. It slipped through their fingers, what they could have. Their lives together now, as incredible as they had been, were just one torturous day of teasing after the next. Each touch denied, each shy glance averted, a stark reminder of what was never to be.

“Link,” Rhett breathed when Link let his lips free just enough. “I can’t do this...”

Link tried to bring their mouths back together, his hands holding firm to the side of Rhett’s neck. “Let’s go back inside then…” he crooned into the soft skin of Rhett’s throat.

“No, Link.” The threads were coming undone. Rhett pushed him back, holding Link at arm’s length, looking into the soft blues of his eyes nearly blacked out by his pupils. “Us,” he said. “This.” He stepped back, gesturing between the two of them. “I can’t do it anymore.”

“Rh… what…” Link stumbled on the uneven ground, his composure rocked to the core. “What are you… what are you saying?”

He wanted to take it back, but he couldn’t. “I’m tired of compromise... of sneaking around...” Rhett whispered, looking down at his feet. “It’s greedy, I know. Selfish.” He looked back into Link’s eyes. “But if I can’t have all of you… I can’t…”

Link reached out to him, trying to capture his arm, but Rhett shied away. “Rhett… it’s just a rough patch…” he said, stepping closer. “We’ve been here before… it’s gonna be ok—”

“Link. Stop.” Rhett said plainly, moving to step passed him; he tugged his arm out of Link’s reach yet again and spoke softly over his shoulder. “I’m leaving in the morning.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry. I do love you guys, I swear.


	9. Part 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [Love Like This - RY X](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4sHCTPYbUg&feature=youtu.be)   
>  [Body - SYML](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpxIakY3xfQ)   
> 

Walking away from Link was the hardest thing Rhett had ever done. He’d felt hopeless as the words he’d spoken had fallen from his lips. He didn’t want this to be all there was. Was it over? Was it really over? The part of his mind dwelling on what all this might mean for their friendship, for their business, was totally eclipsed by the ache in his heart.

He hadn’t wanted Link to follow him, but it had hurt when he didn’t. It ripped him apart, scoring his flesh leaving open wounds to seep. Is this what Link had wanted? Was this what he’d been waiting for all along? For Rhett to snap because he was too weak to break things off himself?

Rhett kicked his bag across the floor of the bunkie and it slammed into his guitar case, knocking it over. He fell into the chair in the corner, his hands in his hair as he closed his eyes and tried to shut out the world. Just when he’d manage to quiet the voices in his head from a roar to a tolerable din, the rain began to beat down on the tin roof once more.

“Can I just get a _fucking_ break!?” Rhett hollered at the ceiling, pulling at his hair. His heart pounded in his chest, the sound of his rushing blood even louder than the rain. He doubled over on himself, tucking his head between his knees, holding himself there until his back screamed for a reprieve.

He got to his feet and closed his eyes, his chin tipped to the ceiling. The assault of the rain was unrelenting. It rarely rained in Burbank. It was something Rhett dearly missed about home. Something he never fully appreciated until he and everyone else in L.A. County practically prayed for it. The last time he’d been so deafened by it, had been a late Thursday night at the studio.

Droplets had bounced off the pavement outside their office window, rhythmically drowning out the buzz and hum of appliances and lights. It had underscored a night of passion between the two of them, their work having laid forgotten on their desks as their naked skin intertwined on the couch, the rug, and against the exposed, rough brick of the walls.

Everything always seemed so clear when he was wrapped up in Link. There was no question. There was no doubt. No pretense or guilt. They were meant to be together, meant to share this life. Rhett’s breath came in a haggard shudder as his chin fell to his chest. It wouldn’t matter how many times they argued, or how many mistakes they made. Their existence was so inexorably intertwined, that to sever the connection would leave the other wounded beyond repair, left to bleed out and wither.

“God dammit, Link…” he muttered under his breath before rushing to the door, throwing back the curtain. His heart leapt up his throat.

Link was standing among the trees in front of the bunkie, his gaze trained on the ground at his feet. He was soaked through, his hair matted down over his forehead, water streaming down the bridge of his nose and from the tips of his fingers.

Rhett’s fingers trembled as he fumbled to find the door handle, eyes never drifting from Link, and when the door finally slid open, Link looked up.

His lips parted to speak, but Rhett didn’t give him a chance. He rushed out into the rain and collided with him, his hands cradling Link’s cheeks as he kissed him breathless. Peppering his jawline and cheeks with the apology his words could never offer.

Link pressed into him, his own hands knotting into the loose cotton of Rhett’s shirt. His mouth ghosting over Rhett’s cheek and brow as Rhett kissed into the nape of his neck, pulling Link closer. Their clothing clung to their wet skin, drawing away the heat of their embrace, leaving it to lift into the air in steamy curls.

“I’m… Link…” Rhett said between the presses of his lips.

“I know…” Link’s hand glided up his back into his now drenched hair. “Shh… I know…”

Rhett began to walk backward toward the bunkie with Link in his arms; he tripped over the threshold, stumbling backward a few steps, Link falling into his chest.

His gaze was hot with need when he looked up at Rhett. He swallowed hard before his hands flew to the buttons of Rhett’s shirt. He peeled it from Rhett’s skin, kissing him deeply as Rhett shoved the jacket from his broad shoulders.

They undressed each other with a fevered passion, breathing each other in and pawing at wet skin until there was no barrier separating their need. Rhett rocked against Link’s hip while Link’s hands worked over his backside.

“Rhett…” he breathed, his lips now grazing over the shell of Rhett’s ear. “I need you…”

Rhett groaned, bucking against him, walking back a step until his calves met the edge of the bed.

“I’ve always needed you…”

Rhett fell back on the bed, pulling Link down on top of him and then rolling him onto his back. He looked down into Link’s glittering eyes, brushing the wet strands of hair back from his forehead.

“I always will,” Link breathed as Rhett closed his mouth over Link's plush lips, kissing him with conviction, their bodies rolling together, their fingers slotting between one another’s in the sheets above Link’s head. “But right now… I need you to make me forget…” he said, pushing Rhett away to look him in the eye. “Like it’s just you and me, bo,” he smiled. “Only ever you and me.”

Rhett’s throat burned with the force of holding back the tears that threatened to well up in his eyes. His lip trembled when he tried to respond, the muscles of his arm quivering as he held himself up, hovering over Link, his wet hair dripping onto Link’s chest.

Link reached up and brushed the errant hairs away, his smile true but tortured.

“Okay…” Rhett finally managed, his hand moving to cradle the back of Link’s head. “Okay.” Their lips met and their bodies found the familiar grooves into which the other fit.

With his hands tightly gripping Rhett’s shoulders, Link pushed himself up the bed and wrapped his legs around Rhett’s waist, all the while his lips peppered Rhett’s shoulders and chest with wet kisses.

Rhett sat up on his knees, shoving Link down onto the bed and laying his palm hot on the underside of Link’s thigh, until the crook of Link’s knee was in his hand. He lifted his leg until Link’s thigh was pressed against his chest and his head was lolling in the pillows.

 _Make him forget._ Rhett wet his lips and slid back until he was laying out on his chest between Link’s legs, his warm breath washing over Link’s inner thighs.

“Oh… shit…” Link panted. “Fuck, Rhett…”

Rhett shoved Link’s leg a little higher, spreading him open enough to breathe down his cleft before pressing his open mouth to the soft skin that stretched between his flickering entrance and his twitching member.

Link groaned, clutching at the sheets, his whole body beginning to tremble in anticipation of the touch Rhett was about to supply.

The catch in Link’s breath was one of his favorite parts — because it preceded the panted moans of him falling apart in such a perfect way — so when Rhett pressed the flat of his tongue against Link’s opening, he listened for it with a trained ear. His eyes rolled back when Link gasped, unable to prevent the smile that played across his lips as Link writhed under the wet touch of his tongue.

“Oh... yeah…” Link moaned, reaching down to hold his own leg out of Rhett’s way, spreading himself open even wider, allowing Rhett’s tongue to dip inside, and he squeezed around it, pulsing and twitching between the gentle thrusts.

Rhett slid his arms under Link’s back and held him firmly by the shoulders against his mouth, lapping and suckling at him until he was nearly incoherent with need.

“Rhett…” he panted. “Do it… please… just do it.”

With a final sweep of his tongue, Rhett sat back up to look at the mess he’d made.

Link was squirming and lost in the throes of his need. His eyes were squinted closed, his hands still kneading wrinkles into the sheet; his length laying hard against his stomach, leaking and glistening from the tip.

Rhett groaned and inched closer, Link’s knees tightening around his waist as he sucked on his fingers, coating them in saliva and teasing Link’s entrance, dipping down to take Link in his mouth with a languid drag of his tongue. Rhett wanted to forget too, to be so lost in this bliss that he could forget that nothing had changed, to hide away from the reality that what they were doing was a denial of fact. He wanted nothing more than to shield himself from the weight of it all, to feel like this was all more than just an intangible fantasy.

Link met his gaze, holding himself up on his elbows, watching Rhett work him over with his mouth. His jaw hung slack as Rhett drove his wet fingers inside, and he ground into the thrust of them.

When Link’s eyes fluttered closed, Rhett welcomed the reprieve. He wanted to give this to Link, to give him everything he had. He didn’t want Link to sense the growing fear that was welling up inside him, didn’t want to ruin this. He wanted to be present for the gorgeous man beneath him, and Rhett was fighting away the thoughts that called out from the recesses of his mind that Link wasn’t his, that this was all to be snatched away. But when Link’s eyes opened again, the voices were suddenly silenced by the warmth and need of the man he loved.

With a choked sob, Link spoke. “Rhett… please…” he took Rhett’s hand in his.

Rhett released Link from his mouth and let his fingers slide out of his grippingly-tight entrance. He leaned over Link and kissed the soft supplication from his lips.

Link licked into the kiss, and spoke into Rhett’s open mouth. “Fuck me, Rhett...”

To deny Link would be to deny his lungs the very air he breathed. And so he didn’t. Rhett held him close, rocking into his body and speaking soft affirmations of the love he felt into his flushed skin as the two of them rode out the waves of pleasure that led them both to edge of their release. Link’s fingers were knotted in Rhett’s hair, his teeth dragging lines into Rhett’s shoulder as he came between their chests a few thrusts before Rhett’s own release spilled into him.

They laid together, exhausted and spent, listening to the rain still pounding down outside the open door. Neither of them spoke another word until they fell alseep in each other’s arms, letting the gentle trace of their fingers over skin spell out the words they couldn’t bring themselves to say.

Love was never meant to be as complicated as this, never meant to as torturous and raw — of that Rhett was sure — but if there was anything Rhett was willing to suffer for in this life, it was the man curled up in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's kinda better? I don't even know anymore. Sorry, y'all. <3


	10. Part 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Recommended Listening:**   
>  [It's Alright - Fractured](https://youtu.be/DNCH2-P0Lfs)   
> 

The sun rose over the water, the pink glow of the horizon coming just before the dawn. Rhett stood on the patio overlooking the rocks and sipped on his mug of tea. Link was still sleeping. He’d be out for a while longer. They’d spent the previous day wrapped up in each other, eventually making their way back to the main cabin, only to fall into the sheets again. They soaked together in the jacuzzi, made love in front of the fire, and hid away from the reality that nipped at the edges of their little stolen piece of the world.

They had four days. Four days left to hide in this wilderness. Four days left to pretend. Imagination is a funny thing. Something that comes so easily when you’re staring up at the clouds as a child — a world of possibilities drifting above you — your whole life stretched out in front of you, untainted and pure. But imagination is simply the mind’s deception, or so Rhett had come to think. We might romanticize our fictional worlds — call them an escape, think of them as a form of freedom when we are cemented in place — but Rhett knew that his own imagination had truly become a prison.

These breaks in the wall of their reality were something he deeply cherished, but each time it was harder and harder to walk away, making it nearly impossible to go back to what their life had become. Soon all of this would just be a beautiful memory, one tucked away on a shelf in the recesses of his mind, left to collect dust with all the others. He would often thumb through them while he laid awake in bed next to his wife. There was no going back to where all this mess had begun, and even if he could, was there guarantee that he wouldn’t just be forced to watch it all play out the same way all over again, helpless to make a single change? Who was he to think the Universe would yield to his will?

Destiny. Was this his? Surely what he and Link had was more than simple happenstance, but all the rest? It felt more like punishment. Was he being reprimanded for the wrongs of a past self? Or was he just plain selfish? Wanting it all and then some. He _was_ selfish, he knew that. Sometimes he hated himself for the greed he felt. He loved Link, and he knew that love was reciprocated as deeply as any love could be, but it didn’t stop him from rubbing Link’s face in their mistakes. It didn’t stop him from feeling a cold, ugly pit of resentment in his stomach when he looked at both of their family’s photos. And it certainly didn’t stop him from so often placing the blame unfairly on Link’s shoulders, just as he had the day before.

Rhett had so much to be thankful for, and the love he shared with Link was one of them, but he couldn’t help but wonder what might have been if they’d never shared that first touch, that somehow they’d shifted things in that moment, thrown their lives off an intended course, like perhaps they’d pierced the veil between this universe and another, and were trying to live in the in-between. So much of what they shared felt stolen, so perhaps it was reasonable to feel like a thief, deserved even. But they’d gotten into this mess together — each step they’d taken to get here, they’d walked hand-in-hand. If there was a blame to be laid, they would shoulder the weight of it together. The way forward, though shrouded in uncertainty, was together.

Rhett stood tall looking over the water and whispered into his nearly empty mug. “Time to wake up, Link.”

  


That night, the stars had never seemed so bright, each one twinkled against the blackness of the sky like it was trying to outshine all the others. Rhett and Link laid in the sand underneath the spray of the Milky Way, their hands folded together. Where they went from here, what all of this was going to mean when they went back to California, neither of them really knew. The only thing that was absolutely clear was that a change was coming — something had to give — and though neither of them really knew what the repercussions of that change might be, they both knew that it could very well mean the end of all of this.

That morning had been one of weight and reality, discussions that had been swept under the rug for years finally had, but what was most clear when the air was full of the echos of all those words, was that this time was special and that they weren’t about to throw it away or squander it. So they’d promised each other these four days, knowing they couldn’t guarantee anything more.

It was without trepidation that they held each other at night. It was without guilt that they consumed one another in the candle light. Every breath drawn into heaving lungs was one taken to keep it all alive.

Their remaining days passed more quickly than any they’d ever shared, like some unknown force was spinning the earth faster just to steal it away. On the last night — with their bags packed and piled next to the door — they held one another close. Rhett kissed away the goodbye he could see beginning to darken the sparkle of Link’s eyes. They didn’t sleep, the potency of their refusal to give up even a single second keeping them from giving in even when sleep lovingly beckoned them.

  


They stood on the dock the next morning, watching the approach of the boat that had come to take them back to shore.

“This is it then, huh?” Link asked, looking straight ahead.

“Mmm,” Rhett hummed, looking down at the gaps between the boards below his feet, listening to the water lap at the shoreline until he felt Link’s hand on his.

“This really was perfect, Rhett…” Link turned to him, his smile weak and tortured. “I want you to know that.”

There were a thousand things Rhett wanted to say, but it took all he had to keep the tears from breaking free. He pulled Link to his chest and pressed a firm kiss into his hair. 

Link sighed out a choked breath against the exposed skin at the top of Rhett’s chest, and the feel of its warmth nearly broke Rhett’s heart.

“I’m not giving up,” Rhett whispered, squeezing him tight.

Link was silent for a long time — the boat drawing nearer — before he spoke. “Me either.”

“I love you.”

“I know.”

As they watched their secluded paradise disappear behind them, swallowed up in the trees that stretched along the horizon, Rhett reached out and took Link’s hand in his. _Together_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I was such a liar. I really did intend this to be a quick one. It's all done now. Many apologies.
> 
> RTR <3


End file.
